Various embodiments of a steering column assembly are described herein. In particular, the embodiments described herein relate to improvements in steering column assemblies.
Steering column assemblies for automotive vehicles and the like are increasingly required to be adjustable for rake and, in many cases, reach. This requires the column shroud, within which the steering column is rotatably located, to be fixed to the vehicle by a clamp assembly which can be locked and unlocked to either prevent movement or permit adjustment of the column shroud position respectively.
One common arrangement uses a column shroud which comprises an inner tubular member and an outer tubular member which telescope one inside the other to permit reach adjustment. A fixing rail welded to one of the tubes is secured to a support bracket by a releasable clamp assembly. A simple single adjust mechanism includes a generally vertical elongate slot in the support bracket. The clamp assembly can then move along the slot when in the unlocked position to provide rake adjustment. Reach adjustment can be achieved by providing an elongate slot in the guide rail generally parallel to the axis of the column through which the clamp assembly passes.
Other mechanisms have been proposed for clamping the tubes to the support bracket.